1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a medical system architecture with a modality for capturing medical images, an apparatus for processing the medical images and accepting patient-related data, an apparatus for transmitting the images and data, and an apparatus for storing the images and the patient-related data.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The book Bildgebende Systeme fur die medizinische Diagnostik; H. Morneburg, 3.sup.rd Edition, 1195: 680ff teaches medical system architectures in which, for the retrieval of patient data and of images created by modalities, image observation and processing locations, known as work stations, are connected to an image communication network. In previous medical imaging systems, medical digital images have been created, processed and archived by means of electromagnetic waves in the invisible region, such as X-ray images, ultrasound images, etc . . . Such conventional medical system architectures with such work stations do not allow a clear identification and allocation of the examined patient to the patient files.
Heretofore, clear, machine-readable patient identifiers have employed a name and/or ID number, for example, which have been added to the digital image data files in a portion thereof known as a header. An unmistakable identification of the patient, however, still is not achieved by such conventional headers.
Furthermore, in many medical cases such as in endoscopy, surgery, and for skin diseases, photographic images are advantageous for the diagnosis and the history of the disease, it being possible to visibly document success of a treatment by means of such photographic images.
British Specification 2 288 511 describes a diagnostic apparatus in which the signal from a video camera is digitized, processed and, after being compressed for remote diagnosis, the compressed data are transmitted over a telephone network.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,241,466 describes a system for managing and storing important documents which are acquired by an optical scanner and are stored on a CD ROM.